Overall, President Trump's 2018 Solar Return is difficult, though not so difficult as the prior year. Its most angular planets are SSR Moon and natal Mercury. It's strongest feature is a mundane T-square of Moon, Mercury, Saturn, and Uranus, with all but Moon being partile. Additionally, he has a Venus-Uranus square on angles.
SSR Moon angular (setting 1°08') signifies that emotional excitement surrounds him. He is vulnerable, more responsive to occurrences rather than initiating or directing them. He is keenly attuned to fluctuating, changing circumstances that require hm to adapt to new situations. He reacts more spontaneously to impromptu situations, giving way to whims and impulses. Appetites are heightened; for example, few weddings occur with this placement, but many wild oats are sown. It's good for keeping him in the spotlight, but the aspects Moon receives suggest that this year's spotlight is undesirable.
Moon conjoins natal Mercury (1°38'), which is closely angular (setting 1°10'). This indicates curiosity and learning, with much data storage and retrieval. Communication flows rapidly: He is oriented primarily to exchanges of data and commerce. Mercurial years are notably laden with busy hours and abundant activity.
SSR Mercury, Saturn, and Uranus are all 3° past angles. Adding the more closely angular Moon, we find the following aspects:
- Mercury-Uranus sq. 0°05' in mundo
- Mercury-Saturn op. 0°32' in mundo
- Saturn-Uranus sq. 0°37' in mundo
- Moon-Uranus sq. 2°04' in mundo
- Moon-Mercury conj. 2°09' in mundo
- Moon-Saturn op. 2°41' in mundo
This is a complex picture. Moon and Mercury together (already a theme of the chart) show a year that is constantly busy, reacting, adaptive, always drawn hither and yon by moving targets and shifting condition. Mercury-Saturn signals communication breakdowns, frustrations and agitation from things going wrong, often from unconscious self-sabotage. Mercury-Uranus signals not just new areas of interest and (repeating a theme) heightened curiosity, but especially new floods of information - disclosures and revelations - what Bradley termed "baring the truth in bas-relief." One easy guess is that ongoing investigations, leaks, and disclosures cause him no end of agitation and frustration. Moon-Saturn and Moon-Uranus give much the same sense.
Which leads me to conclude that, along with all the Moon-Mercury traits, the key combination of this quartet is Saturn-Uranus. We can do no better than to quote Donald Bradley directly.
Solar & Lunar Returns wrote:When configurations involving Saturn and Uranus together are in the foreground... the native will undergo mental conflicts which cause him to act inconsistently even foolishly, to his own detriment. Persons responding to this vibration tend to abandon pacific principles, in the hopes of obtaining their objectives by any means, fair or foul. So far as external events are concerned, Saturn-Uranus forces break up old conditions; the native may even find himself living away from his family before the influence has run its course of disrupting the status quo.
Relationships change, certainly disorienting him and possibly with scandal. I see this in a 0° Venus-Uranus square with each moderately angular - and with Neptune octile both Venus and Uranus with orbs of 0°08' and 0°03' respectively. Of Ebertin's offering for Ne = Ve/Ur, given Trump's character the most likely are, "a peculiar disposition in sex-expression... a peculiar love-relationship, the necessity to renounce love suddenly." Were this a mundane chart instead of a personal return, the same aspects would suggest sudden changes in foreign relationships with deception, back-stabbing, and miscalculation.
Pluto is more widely foreground, suggesting separations. Saturn opposes natal Mercury (3°06'), which suggests his own words come back to haunt him. Moon squares natal Neptune, but perhaps too wide (4°39'), given everything else happening in this chart.
Foreground transiting Saturn squares his natal Neptune exactly (0°05'), the most direct mark of grief and troubled states of mind.
PROGRESSIONS (exact)
Several important progressions occur in this Solar Return. Early on, we are likely to learn what the Venus-Uranus-Neptune signifies: Progressed Venus squares Uranus exactly on July 12, and aspects Neptune July 27. In the midst of this is friction and volatility: CapQ Moon is octile natal Mars July 15.
Based on the Solar Return progressions alone (and allowing a month either side of the dates listed), his best time in year is November 30 (progressed Moon square natal Jupiter); his worst are the highly separative Moon opposition to SSR Pluto (January 23) and its conjunction with his natal Saturn (May 5). A time of surreal (probably unwarranted, superstitious) optimism stretches from late August through mid-October as progressed Moon trines Jupiter and Neptune: Specifically Jupiter-Neptune themes should emerge around mid-September.
TRANSITS
Here are dates of major transits to the SSR angles and Moon. Notice overlapping indicators of separation and loss. especially near the first of the year.
t Jupiter oct. s Moon Oct 18-27
(exact 10/23)
t Jupiter oct. SQ Moon Nov 16-27
(exact 11/22)
t Saturn conj. SSR Ascendant Dec 16-Jan 2
(exact 12/25)
t Saturn op. s Moon Dec 24-Jan 10
(exact 1/1)
t Pluto op. SQ Moon Dec 16-Apr 18
(exact 3/15)
t Uranus conj. SSR IC Apr 27-June 4, 2019
(exact 5/15)
(The latter is exact about when SQ Moon conjoins natal Saturn.)
Mars sq. s MC July 28
(7/24-31)
Mars conj. s EP Aug 16 & Sep 7
(8/10-9/7)
Mars sq. s MC Sep 25
(9/21-27)
Mars oct. s Moon Nov 9
(11/8-11)
Mars oct. SQ Moon Nov 20
(11/18-22)
Mars sq. s Asc Jan 16
(1/15-18)
Mars sq. s Moon Jan 17
(1/16-19)
Mars sq. SQ Moon Jan 31
(1/30-2/2)
Mars op. s MC Feb 19
(2/18-21)
Mars oct. s Moon Mar 25
(3/24-27)
Mars oct. SQ Moon Apr 13
(4/12-15)
Mars op. s Asc Jun 1
(5/30-6/2)
Mars conj. s Moon Jun 2 (6/1-4)